I wanted to just do a quote of the day for today's stupid statement by 2nd District Republican Senate candidate Sonny McCullough, but decided to expand it and include some of his other wondeful moments throughout the campaign. Regarding the situation of the missing Atlantic City mayor, his opponent Jim Whelan was all over it calling for a resignation, but not Sonny...
"I have not heard any outrage," McCullough said. "In Atlantic City we have seen mayors go to jail, get indicted. It's an unfortunate thing, but we've lived with this stuff before.
"The only thing I hear is 'how could Whelan do this to his best buddy?'" he said. "That's what the locals are talking about."
"If somebody at a fundraiser hands me an envelope, I just turn it right over to the treasurer."
It's still unknown if he returned the cash. That's Sonny trying to say he's not responsible for the people who give him money and sees no conflict at all because .... he doesn't look at who gives him money. He just takes their checks and then just so happens to implement policies favorable to his contributors. Yep, forget the fact that they cash the checks and spend the money: that's see no evil, hear no evil, do no wrong Sonny for you. I wonder who else gave Sonny money that he "doesn't know about"?
"I have not heard any outrage," McCullough said. "In Atlantic City we have seen mayors go to jail, get indicted. It's an unfortunate thing, but we've lived with this stuff before.
"The only thing I hear is 'how could Whelan do this to his best buddy?'" he said. "That's what the locals are talking about."
So Sonny is the kind of legislator who says screw the people, I will stick by my corrupt friend. And his nonchalant comment about Atlantic City Mayors going to jail, well that's like driving by an accident and having the officer tell you to pay no attention to what you see, there's nothing going on there. In what world is it NOT something to take notice of if a Mayor disappears without a trace? Oh and his opponent, Jim Whelan: yeah, he was one of those boring Mayor's who just ran the city and didn't get indicted. Sonny must not like that.
Assemblyman Jim Whelan's 1st TV ad for the 2nd District Senate Seat is a positive bio piece talking about what he has done for his constituents.
I think the ad does it's job and I like him going with a positive introduction to the voters considering how ugly the campaigns have been. Your thoughts?
I want to take the opportunity to introduce myself in what I hope will be the first of several conversations with the Blue Jersey community. I'm Blondell Spellman and I'm running for the Assembly in the 2nd district. I'm running on a ticket with a true reformer, former Atlantic City mayor and Assemblyman Jim Whelan, who is stepping up to take the Senate seat, and my Assembly running mate, Joe Wilkins, a respected and distinguished labor leader in the state. I am making my foray into politics because the stakes are too high for me to sit on the sidelines.
When I graduated from Temple Law School, I was proud to work at the Women Against Abuse Legal Center, where I fought to protect underprivileged women and children from abuse. Later on, I worked at the Claridge casino, where I was proud to lead the compliance team that helped the Claridge become the first casino in Atlantic City to meet recruiting and hiring guidelines for women and minorities. I've been a dedicated community servant during my life, but until now, I've done it outside the public arena.
My focus is to change the way Trenton does business by making government more accountable and New Jersey more affordable. When I talk to voters on the campaign trail, they express grave concerns about being taxed out of their homes. Families are finding it more difficult to afford health care, college tuition for their kids, and cost-of-living expenses. I believe that we all need to do our part to make sure that Trenton lives within its means just like our families do each and every day.
We must also restore trust in our government. It's time to end special insider deals that are costing taxpayers millions of dollars - and demand that our government answer to the people. We must pass rigid ethics reforms and open up government to make it more transparent. Let's start by putting all of our public records online to shed light on the actions of government.
We're all aware of the tough challenges we face as a state, but I'm confident that by working together we can once again point New Jersey in the right direction.
My parents taught me the value of hard work and perseverance. No matter how big the obstacle, they told me to never quit - and never slow down. They showed me the way to become a leader and made me believe that even one person can make a difference.I hope to make that difference in the State Assembly.
I've worked hard to positively impact the lives of ordinary people with my time as a lawyer for underprivileged women and children, my work in the casino industry, and my participation in civic organizations. Now I want to fight for the citizens of New Jersey and for the 2nd district in the Assembly.
James "Sonny" McCullough, a conservative who has spent eighteen years as Mayor of Egg Harbor Township, won Bill Gormley's State Senate seat tonight, defeating seven-term Assemblyman Frank Blee by a wide margin.
Gormley was supporting Blee and McCullough was supported by Congressman LoBiondo. The Democratic County chairman promptly welcomed the Senator Elect/Mayor to the race by calling on him to give up his 2nd seat...
Atlantic County Democratic Chairman Ronald Ruff called on McCullough to step down as Mayor. "It would be inconceivable for him to take the oath of office to a second position at the very time the state legislature is trying to put an end to the practice of dual office holding," said Ruff. "Why turn back the clock?"
No word on if he will re-sign from his Mayor's seat but he will face Assemblyman Jim Whelan in the November Election in what will be one of the hottest races in the state most likely.
State Sen. William L. Gormley, one of New Jersey's most powerful and talented legislators, and the de facto leader of the Atlantic County Republican machine, will announce this week that he will not seek re-election in 2007. Gormley has informed Senate leaders of his decision not to run for a ninth term.
His retirement sets up a highly competitive race for the 2nd district State Senate seat, possibly between Republican Frank Blee, the Assembly Minority Whip, and James Whelan, a freshman Democratic Assemblyman and former Mayor of Atlantic City.
That will be an interesting Senate race and would also allow for some new candidates to seek the Assembly seat. The Democrats unsuccessfully ran Damon Tyner who captured almost 49% of the vote with Jim Whelan for this seat in 2004.
NJVoterinfo.org shows the majority of voters, almost 54% in the 2nd district are Independent, with 25.5% registered Republican and 20.6% registered Democrat. Also, with the Democrats holding a 22-18 edge in the Senate, this seat could be important to maintaining and possibly increasing the majority.
